As the rich head of the Qiao family, Mr. Qiao should not have such negative thoughts, nor should he have this unspeakable sense of concession. It seems to be a feeling of indifference to the world. This is a sign of seeing through the world.
It is owned by Mr. Qiao, a hermit who is not a wise man in the business world, but all of this happened to show up in Mr. Qiao.
The simple and deserted house, the old people in their twilight years, and the atmosphere of loneliness.
"Come, eat peanuts and talk about interesting things." Mr. Qiao showed a kind smile again: "I haven't been to Hangzhou for many years. Is the water of Hangzhou West Lake still clear? At this time, are the lotus pods ready to eat?
"
Xue Poye temporarily suppressed his disappointment and said with a smile: "Master, as long as you go to Hangzhou, everything will be clear to you. The lake is still so clear and there are lotus flowers in full bloom on the lake."
"It's so beautiful!" The grandfather seemed to be recalling the scene of his trip to Hangzhou, and said with emotion: "Now that my legs and feet are weak, I can't walk far, so I can only drink wine and eat peanuts at home. Oh, it's not fun.
Not interesting!”
Xue Poye chuckled and said: "Master, just play games. There are so many servants, so playing games will quickly kill the time."
The grandfather waved his hand and said: "Games? Those games are not interesting. If you don't play them, you won't play them!"
Xue Poye rolled his eyes and said hurriedly: "Master, can you play Beast Fighting Chess?"
"Beast-fighting chess?" Grandpa said excitedly, as if Columbus had discovered a new continent: "What beast-fighting chess? Come on, come on, tell me, this game sounds new." At this time, he was like an old naughty boy.
, with a smile on his face.
Before Xue Poye could speak, Mr. Qiao had already said: "Xiao Xue, I have to make things clear. This is just a game, but I can't put any conditions on the old man."
Xue Poye touched his nose and said, "Master likes it. I'll teach you what conditions you will ask for."
In fact, Beast Fighting Chess was the lowest form of game in Xue Poye's era. It was a game played by children. Xue Poye himself was very impressed with this game, so he mentioned it casually.
At that moment, Xue Poye ordered his servants to bring a smooth board and draw a chessboard on it. Then he asked for sixteen small chess pieces and wrote words on them.
These things may be difficult to find elsewhere, but Mr. Qiao usually likes games, so these things are readily available.
Sixteen chess pieces are divided into two sides, with eight pieces on each side, with "elephant", "lion", "tiger", "leopard", "wolf", "kitten", "hound" and "mouse" respectively engraved on them.
”, following nature’s law of the jungle and the strong, eating the eggs like a biological chain.
Mr. Qiao was quite excited. This "Beast Fighting Chess" was something he had never heard of or seen before. He just found it extremely novel. He walked around Xue Poye in circles, occasionally picked up the chess pieces to look at them, and even asked a few questions humbly, laughing happily.
.
Xue Poye loved Mr. Qiao even more in his heart. Although this cooperation was not successful, Xue Poye admired Mr. Qiao's low-key and simple character in life. This old man was not as domineering as ordinary rich men.
Make blessings.
After everything was done, Xue Poye explained the rules to the old man in detail. The old man listened very carefully, and he was an extremely smart and wise elder. He quickly understood the rules, although the first few games were very easy.
The old man's nest was taken away by Xue Poye, but after seven or eight games, the old man's strength increased greatly.
Although this "Beast Fighting Chess" is simple, there are many tricks in the middle. The eight animals help each other, and they compete with each other's chess pieces. It is very interesting to study it.
The old man and the young man battled their wits until noon, when the sun was high in the sky. The old man was old after all and his body couldn't bear it anymore, so Xue Poye suggested to take a rest.
"Xiao Xue, if you don't mind that the Qiao family is weak, why not come to Suzhou and I will look after a few shops for you." The old man stood up, stretched his arms, and said leisurely: "I think you will do well in Suzhou.
.”
Xue Poye was startled for a moment, but he understood instantly and knew that this was a great compliment from the old man. He hurriedly bowed to the end and said sincerely: "My great master, this junior is so grateful."
He knew that since the old man said this, he obviously had a good impression of him. Could it be that his favor for him increased greatly because of this "Beast Fighting Chess"? Xue Poye believed that the answer was no.
"Although I'm old and don't like too many fights, I like to see young people full of fighting spirit." The old man chuckled, grabbed a few peanuts and stuffed them into his mouth, and said vaguely: "You little one
A restaurant owner who dares to challenge the Fang and Lu families. He is very courageous and confident. He is somewhat similar to the old man when he was young."
Comparing himself with when he was young, the grandpa was too flattering, and Xue Poye suddenly felt a little frightened.
"Since you started from a restaurant, I will give you the management of the four restaurants in Xicheng first. What do you think?" The old man sat on the chair and looked at Xue Poye with a smile. There seemed to be something hidden behind his kind eyes.
Xue Poye stood up straight, shook his head, and still said respectfully: "I'm afraid I will disappoint the master."
The old man narrowed his eyes and smiled and said: "Are you still not satisfied with the four restaurants? You have to know that by helping my Qiao family, you can earn as much money as your two restaurants."
Xue Poye said sternly: "This junior is very clear about the patronage of the Grand Master, but if I just let go of Hangzhou, people will look down upon me and think that I left with my tail between my legs because I was afraid of the power of the Lu family. I am just a short-term person."
I don’t allow myself to do this. Since I have already competed with the Lu family, I will continue to do it regardless of success or failure, and I can only live up to the good intentions of the grandpa."
The old man chuckled and said: "With your strength, can you fight them?"
Xue Poye smiled bitterly and said: "At least I won't back down from the battle." Thinking of being almost killed by Fang Xiaoquan's conspiracy, a surge of anger arose in his heart. He just felt that even if he couldn't accomplish anything big in this life, he would definitely bring down Fang Lu.
Two families.
"It's good to have a fighting spirit, but you must not be impulsive." The old man seemed to be warning him. He took a sip of wine and said, "In this case, I hope you can become a wizard in the Hangzhou business community."
The word "genius" has a lot of meaning.
If you want to defeat the Lu family in Hangzhou, you can only be a "wonder". If Xue Poye can really defeat the Lu family, he can be regarded as a "wonder" in the business world.
…
…
Although Mr. Qiao casually invited Xue Poye to dine at Qiao's mansion, Xue Poye declined politely. Since the cooperation was not going very smoothly, he would always be very reserved at the dinner table and could not even find the right place to talk.
It would be a bit embarrassing if we keep talking about games.
Sitting in the carriage, Xue Poye frowned. Could it be that he really had to go to the northwest to buy autumn clothes? This would be a very troublesome matter.
Mr. Qiao had already declined the cooperation in an understatement. Although the old man spoke with a smile, Xue Poye knew in his heart that since the old man said such words, there was almost no room for negotiation. According to him, he wanted to protect Qiao.
It is absolutely impossible for the family's faith to violate his own principles because of this business.
Mingxu put his hands in his sleeves, looked at Xue Poye with a faint smile, and asked in a low voice: "Shopkeeper, is the matter not done?"
Xue Poye had no intention of quarreling, nodded and sighed: "Actually, I should have thought that the Qiao family has a huge business, so how could it destroy the current superficial peace because of my business? It's just that I always thought that the Qiao family was a big business owner.
, should have an expansion mentality. Although it is not shown on the surface, I have always felt that they still want to expand their business to other places in Jiangnan, but... Hehe, I didn't expect that Mr. Qiao didn't seem to have any enterprising spirit, and just wanted to guard Suzhou's wealth.
This is really a huge miscalculation.”
"Could this be the end of this business?" Mingxu asked blankly.
"Nevermind?"
.”
Xue Poye was mentally prepared for the difficulties of the business world. He would never be discouraged by a temporary setback, not to mention that there were still a few months until autumn, so there was always a way.
When the carriage crossed the small bridge, Ming Xucai said thoughtfully: "Shopkeeper, I saw something today. I don't know if there will be a change."
Xue Poye glanced at him and said curiously: "Something? A turning point? What thing? What turning point?"
Mingxu knew the temper of the helmsman and did not dare to show off. He lowered his voice and leaned closer: "The carriage, I saw the carriage!"
Xue Poye frowned, Mingxu's words were confusing, what kind of carriage?
Seeing that the helmsman seemed to be going crazy, Mingxu hurriedly continued: "Master, do you still remember the tea shed when we came to Suzhou? The young master who gave us snacks?" As if worried that Xue Poye wouldn't understand, he added: "
That blind man!"
Xue Poye understood and asked curiously: "You mean you saw his carriage? Where is it?"
"Qiao Mansion!" Mingxu seemed a little confused: "While the shopkeeper was talking to Mr. Qiao, I was walking around outside and saw the carriage."
"Did you read that correctly?"
Mingxu said with absolute certainty: "No, I'm absolutely not mistaken. It's the same carriage. Although the two horses were off the shaft, there are two white horses not far from the carriage, still eating horse feed."
Xue Poye frowned and was silent for a long time, then slowly said: "It seems that Mr. Blind... is a descendant of the Qiao family!"